Brick by brick: Downtown Albany looking to build on momentum

ALBANY – A downtown construction project on the 100 block of Pine Avenue is making way for a new business in the central corridor, an area that is seeing an uptick in activity.

The storefront at 108 Pine Ave. that is being prepared for occupancy is located between The Flint restaurant and the former Kings Corn Gourmet Popcorn location, which is itself being prepped for a new commercial endeavor. The property being developed is owned by the Albany-Dougherty Inner City Authority.

“We’re retrofitting the building,” Albany Downtown Manager Lequerica Gaskins said. “We’re getting it ready. As you know, there is quite a bit of momentum in downtown.”

Part of the renovation includes removing the steeple-type residential appearance of the 108 Pine Ave. building and returning it to its brick appearance, which will make it complementary to other storefronts in the vicinity, Gaskins said.

“The ideal type of business for that building would be a restaurant or retail development,” she said.

The former Kings Corn location at 104 Pine Ave. is the planned site for Bee Smoothie Cafe & Bistro. A short distance away, Q’s Cakes and More is slated to go into the Flats at 249, located at 249 Pine Ave.

And at 230 W. Broad Ave., JT Esquire Men’s Clothing is preparing to set up shop.

All of those are building on other projects under way, including the 4C on Front facility, which will move into the 221 and 215 N. Front St. storefronts in late 2025 or early 2026; A Better Way Grocers, and a residential project slated for the former Davis Exchange Building at the corner of West Broad Street and North Washington Street.

The residential/loft mixed-use development is “going to change that whole corner,” Gaskins said. “One of the (downtown) master plan’s recommendations is focusing on residential.”

Gaskins’ office also is working with the Georgia Department of Community Affairs to place the central business district downtown in the National Register of Historic Places. Downtown Albany also will seek to have the Harlem District placed in the register.

That designation is more than bragging rights.

“That opens up financing that can be used by developers to enhance other sources of funding for projects,” Gaskins said. “It also helps with the historical fabric of the community. There’s a lot of things going on downtown.”

Staff Photo: Alan MauldinAlanMauldin[email protected]
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